"Some specialty drinks have about the same or more sugar than soda," points out registered dietitian Beth Warren, author of Living a Real Life With Real Food. Worth noting: A can of regular Coca-Cola contains less than eight teaspoons of sugar.

While the numbers are shocking, certified dietitian-nutritionist Lisa Moskovitz, RD, CEO of NY Nutrition Group, says she's not surprised. "These drinks are popular for a reason," she says. "The high amounts of sugar not only make the beverage taste better but also offer a surge in energy on top of the caffeine already found in tea and coffee." Moskovitz says you can almost get a high from these drinks, making it easier to get hooked on them.

The new U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend getting no more than 10 percent of your total calories from sugar. If you're eating a 2,000-calorie diet, that means you really don't want to have more than 10 teaspoons of sugar a day.

Sugary drinks in particular are concerning because they can enter your blood stream quickly, spiking your blood sugar levels. "It's almost as if you're directly and intravenously emptying sugar into your bloodstream," Moskovitz says. "The more your blood sugar spikes, the harder you will crash later and often crave even more sugar to give you an energy boost again."

Added sugars can also result in a host of long-term effects like heart disease, weight gain, dental cavities, type 2 diabetes, and even bodily inflammation (which has been associated with an increased cancer risk).

While Warren points out that these drinks offer very little nutritional value, she says it's OK to treat yourself every once in a while. "You can always make a not-so-healthy choice better by trying to eliminate added ingredients that you do not need," she says. So, instead of having a large sugary drink, opt for the smallest version and take a pass on the whipped cream. You can save a lot of sugar—and your health—in the process.